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“Uh, Than?”
Thanatos looks up from his phone when he hears Zagreus call him from the bathroom. “What is it, Zag?”
“Can you, um, bring me some clean underwear?” Zagreus’ voice is quiet as it travels from the bathroom to where Thanatos is sitting in their living room, but there’s something in it that catches his attention.
“Everything okay in there?”
Zagreus doesn’t respond right away.
“Zag?”
“Just… bring me some new underwear,” he hears a brief pause followed by, “please?”
Thanatos is confused by the request and starts to get concerned, but based on the sound of Zagreus’ voice, he decides not to press further. “I’ll be right there.”
He sets his phone down, getting up from the couch, and makes his way to their bedroom. He grabs a clean pair of underwear from Zagreus’ dresser and heads to the bathroom. Walking in with fresh underwear in hand, Thanatos sees Zagreus sitting on the toilet, pants and underwear pulled down to his knees, and he sees a look of distress on his boyfriend’s face. Before he can ask what’s wrong, Thanatos spots the red stain in the crotch of Zagreus’ underwear, and realizes what the problem is.
“Oh, Zag,” Thanatos crouches down in front of Zagreus and hands over the requested underwear.
“Yeah,” Zagreus takes the offered underwear, removing his pants and the dirty pair, and slips the new ones over his ankles. “Looks like I got a period again.” Thanatos can hear the way he tries to make his voice sound calm, but he knows his boyfriend too well to be fooled by it.
Thanatos takes the dirty underwear and tosses it into the hamper. “Do you think it’s because your testosterone dose was lowered recently?”
Zagreus nods, not quite looking at Thanatos. “I think so, yeah. My doctor said that it could happen since my hormone levels would fluctuate from it, but I didn’t actually think it would.”
“You should be okay, love. She also said that it would be light if it did happen since you haven’t had one in so long.” Thanatos puts his hand on Zagreus’ knee. “Are you in any pain or is it just the bleeding?”
He shakes his head. “No not really, a little bit of cramping but I’ll be okay.” He looks at Thanatos with a smile that he can tell is to try and hide how much this situation is upsetting him, but Thanatos can see through it by the look in Zagreus’ eyes. “I’m guessing we don’t have any tampons or anything here, do we?”
“I’m afraid not, we haven’t had a need for them in a while, but I can run to the store quickly and get some.” Thanatos rubs his thumb over Zagreus’ knee, gently squeezing three times, and gives him a look that he hopes is comforting. “Will you be alright until I get back?”
“Yeah, I’ll be fine. I can just use a makeshift toilet paper pad until then so I don’t have to sit here the whole time.” He chuckles nervously, but Thanatos can see him starting to relax a bit.
“Sounds good. Do you need anything else while I’m out?”
“Just the tampons should be okay, thank you.”
Thanatos smiles reassuringly and stands up. “Alright then. I’ll be back soon, love.” He gives Zagreus a kiss on his forehead and heads out of the bathroom.
It’s a short drive to the store, and Thanatos quickly makes his way to the aisle where the menstrual supplies are. He grabs a box of tampons, and decides to grab another as well as a box of liners just in case. Then, he goes over to where the pain medication is and picks some up for any cramps or other discomfort Zagreus may have. With the necessary supplies in his basket, Thanatos heads to the other side of the store to get some of Zagreus’ favored treats, knowing that they’ll be just as helpful for him as the tampons and pain meds will. He grabs chocolates, chips, and a pint of ice cream, and after checking everything off his mental list, Thanatos goes to check out and head home.
“I’m home, Zag,” Thanatos announces as he walks into their apartment, kicking off his shoes and hanging his keys up by the door. When he doesn’t get a response, he tries calling again. “Zag?”
“Bedroom,” Zagrues’ voice replies, and Thanatos can hear the strain in it, letting him know that getting the meds was the right call.
He sets down the bag with the treats and puts the ice cream in the freezer before it can melt, then heads into their room to see his boyfriend curled up under the blankets. When he sees him come in, Zagreus sits up, wincing slightly with the movement. Thanatos smiles softly and sits next to him on the bed.
“How are you feeling, love?” He brings a hand up to Zagreus’ face, rubbing his thumb over his cheek.
Zagreus nuzzles into the touch. “I’m okay, more cramping than I expected though.”
“Good thing I picked up some pain meds for you too,” Thanatos says, holding up the bag with supplies. “You can take some after you’ve eaten something. I also got some treats for you for later.” He leans in to place a kiss on Zagreus’ forehead.
“You didn’t have to, Than. I told you that I only needed the tampons.”
Thanatos smiles again and looks at his boyfriend softly. “I wanted to, though. I figured you might need them and I knew you wouldn’t ask, you deadbeat.”
Zagreus laughs, knowing the term is more endearing than it is insulting. “Thank you, love.” He smiles and kisses Thanatos.
Thanatos takes the meds out of the bag and places them on the bedside table, then holds out the bag for Zagreus to take. “Here, go put one in and put the rest in the cabinet.”
Zagreus takes the offered bag, face contorting as he stands up, and heads over to the bathroom. As he does, Thanatos goes back to the kitchen, grabbing the treats he picked up and a glass of water. He pulls the ice cream out of the freezer and takes a spoon from the drawer just as he hears Zagreus finish up in the bathroom. When he comes back out, he spots the pint in Thanatos’ hand and his eyes light up.
“You got me ice cream?”
Thanatos nods and holds out the treats as Zagreus walks over. “Mhmm, some chips and chocolate too.”
Zagreus smiles as he takes them and kisses Thanatos again. “You’re too good to me, love.”
“I’m only doing what I should to take care of you, Zag.” He smiles and gives his boyfriend a kiss in return. “Do you want to rest in bed or on the couch?”
“In bed, if that’s alright.”
“Of course it is. You go lie down and I’ll grab my laptop so we can watch something together, okay?”
Zagreus nods and heads back to their room. Thanatos carries the glass of water and picks up his laptop from the couch as he follows. When he gets there, Zagreus is already in bed eating some chips, and Thanatos hands over the glass of water so he can take the pain meds. He climbs into the bed next to Zagreus and opens his laptop, pulling up a streaming site and letting Zagreus pick what they watch.
He holds him close as they cuddle and watch a movie, Zagreus occasionally offering him a bite of ice cream, Thanatos running his fingers through his hair, feeling him relax as they lie in bed.
“Are you feeling any better?”
He feels Zagreus nod. “Much better. Thank you, Than.”
“Of course, love.” He places a kiss to the top of his head and pulls him closer. “Anything for you.”
Zagreus rests his head on Thanatos’ shoulder, shifting his attention back to the movie. He’s glad that Zagreus is feeling better, knowing how much dysphoria his periods gave him in the past, and he’s glad he was able to help. They lie there together, sharing the treats Thanatos bought and putting on another movie once the first one finishes, spending the rest of the day cuddled up in bed.